Dancer Dejour

I had a great experience there today buying dance wear for my child. The man working there was helpful, courteous, and patient and seemed that way to the other multiple customers that were shopping in the store during our visit. I did not find their prices to be noticeably different from other shops, except for discount places of course (which this is not). Their return policy allows for store credit within 7 days for most items, which I think is perfectly fair for dance wear. There are fitting rooms there so this seems reasonable. I was able to use a Unilocal deal for $ 25 off. I was definitely pleasantly surprised after reading the negative reviews here.

So I went here to check out ballet flats and demi-​pointe shoes. I have never done ballet before, but I’m starting and thought this place would be good since it isn’t as far as some other stores. Ok, fine. So I go in, and the sales guy helps me and brings me two ballet flats, both BLOCH brand, which is nice. Leather and canvas. Ok, still fine. I try them on, and ask if they sell for the same price as the manufacturer does online. He says, our price is our price. Ok, so what does that mean. Anyways, I then say I need to ask my mom about buying the shoes. He immediately starts to chastise me about not buying them and says, you come here to small business to get sizing and then go online-​you as a dancer should know the importance of small business yadda yadda yadda. OMG I have NEVER been talked to like that. We as customers are free to make our own decisions about purchasing when, what, from whom, and why. Now I WILL buy online for sure. Absolutely ZERO customer service. I guess my review echoes the others who say he assumed you should buy on the spot. No good.

First time at Dancer Dejour and they saved my butt. Dance Theater Shop in San Mateo was closed for Thanksgiving weekend (!) and my daughter had a Nutcracker performance and needed tights. Luckily DD is open year-​round (even Sundays) except major holidays. They didn’t give me the discount Dance Theater does but for last minute they were there.

The little one decided she wants to dance and so we went to the nearest place that had clothes and shoes for ballet and tap. I try to give store the benefit of the doubt if I’ve never been there. And I did read some of the bad reviews but went in to this store with the mindset that if the place was really bad with price and customer service, then I’d just buy from somewhere else. I didn’t expect it to be exactly as bad as the negative reviews say.
I walked in and there’s a sign on the counter that says «No Returns». To be honest, when I first read about this in the Unilocal reviews, I didn’t quite believe that in this day and age that any retail store would have a «no return policy». No refunds might be a little less harsh but not even willing to exchange is kind of extreme. Think about buying brand new shoes for your toddler and after a day they complain about the shoes pinching their toes. Everybody needs to return shoes and clothes at some point, right? Well, it’s true, this place practices a retail version of Sharia Law.
I had some idea about the price hikes here having checked online beforehand, and as numerous people have mentioned, the prices here are much higher than online. Maybe it’s because they think because they’re located in Menlo Park that they assume people love to pay 50% more. Maybe they have Somali pirates develop their pricing strategy. Maybe they are using an algorithm based on US healthcare prices,… I really don’t know but anyone who buys from this place is desperate, believes convenience trumps costs, or they forgot how to count.
The guy who was at the counter and helped my daughter try on shoes seemed normal enough. He wasn’t unfriendly but he seemed out of place there. With a place that specializes in dance gear with a lot of children items you’d expect someone who is at least a little friendly, not someone who looks like they don’t give a crap. He measured her foot, got some shoes he thought were decent, fitted her and then things got awkward. He just took the shoes she tried on and without even saying a word, he boxed them up, too them to the counter and rang them up without even asking us if we wanted them, wanted something else, or any other normal retail behavior. He just rang them up and sat there waiting for us as if I’d realize that we were wasting his time and so would hurry and make the purchases.
It’s just weird. We made no indication to buy those specific items nor that we were done shopping and he’s already rung up the items and was impatiently waiting for us. It’s like going to a pizza place and when you sit down the server immediately brings you a random pizza with what they think you might have wanted and expects you to eat it… gratefully. That’s not exactly how I roll. So we took out time looking at a few clothing items and then walked out. Probably never to return, unless I am kidnapped and returned there.

This store left me with a sour taste. Reasons:
#1: No return policy. Even if the items are unworn with tags still on, no returns. This is bad policy. When you’re paying high prices (50% higher than online for the same items), you expect friendlier policies than this.
#2: Poor help with sizing. We needed a pair of tights for my daughter. The salesperson said my daughter was a size small. I asked: are you sure she’s a small? She said: yes, the extra small is for kids aged 1 – 3 and would be too tiny. I said OK and bought the tights. When I got home, I looked at the sizing chart on the package and saw that the small that we bought was intended for kids twice her weight! (The extra small would have been just right.) So here we are with tights that are way too big, because we listened to this store’s advice, and — no returns.
#3: Deceptive pricing. There was a box of shoes labeled 50% off. The salesperson told me the shoes in this box were older and of lower quality, and that’s why they were on sale. We tried on a pair, and they did seem lower quality. The price was $ 19, compared to $ 28 for the latest & greatest shoe. I asked: was it 50% off of $ 19? They said no: $ 19 was already the 50% off price. I asked: So these shoes are usually prices at $ 38, which is higher than the «latest & greatest»? They said: I guess so. It was clear that $ 19 was full price, and they just stuck the shoes in a basket that said 50% off to make it look more attractive, with no change in price whatsoever.
On the plus side, the salespeople were nice and accommodated us in trying on different items (leotards, shoes, etc.) But overall, I do have a sour taste due to the above.

I do not recommend this store.
I started doing Zumba about a year ago, and had a hard time finding the right shoes. A classmate recommended Blochs and as I said I prefer buying shoes at the store because I wear 5, but many 5s are still too big for me, so I have to try them on, she also recommended this store. The man who helped me, probably the owner, got impatient when I was not sure whether I should buy them on the spot because of the price. He gave me the right foot to try, and since they felt o.k. I ended up purchasing the shoes. At the very first class, the left foot did not feel right, it was different from the right. I kept twisting my ankle and had no stability. I got the shoes in March, and in September I started feeling pain on the left foot, which ended up with a left ankle surgery. I am not saying the shoes caused the problem, but twisting my left ankle did not help at all. Anyways, I had gave up on the shoes before the surgery, but now I am back to my work out routine and still having trouble to find good shoes– I got a pair of Nike Musique IV and they kill my feet; they are hard and uncomfortable-​so I decided to try on the Bloch again. They are comfortable, the ankle feels ok because of the heel support, but the left foot still felt wrong, so I put on glasses and studied the shoes very carefully. It was when I saw that the left foot is bigger than the right. He sold me a size 5 for the right foot (my size) and a 6 for the left foot. I mentioned that the 5 is already a little big for me, right? let alone a 6. This is why I never had stability and kept twisting my left foot. They do not match. The left is bigger.
I went back there and the man said he is not even sure I purchased the shoes there. He also said I might have switched with someone else’s by mistake. The only thing he could do was give a discount if he had my size and I wanted to buy a new pair. i did not even hear one I am sorry for the mistake or for the inconvenience.
I hope you do not use this store, and I hope someone more customer service oriented open a dance apparel store in the area. Zero for this person.

I needed a skirt for a dance class and wanted to be able to try it on before purchasing (hence looking for a dance supply store instead of just ordering online). The salesperson was friendly and showed me what they had. Note — the selection looks great for little girls doing ballet, but is pretty bare for adults doing any other type of dance. I tried on and bought a skirt that I thought would work, but at my next dance class the teacher said it was too short. Only after getting home did I see on the receipt that there are absolutely no returns, only store credit, and only within 7 days. Well it was 8 days since I had made the purchase… so I have the skirt hanging in my closet with the tags on. As another reviewer mentioned I realize now that I did see a sign in the store with the return policy and I ignored it so that’s my bad. But in general I make it a point to not shop at places that offer no returns — it makes the purchase much more risky and makes the owners seem stingy. Had I been able to return the skirt I would have happily come here again for any future dance needs — now I’ll look somewhere else. Bummer.

we have bought clothing for ballet from this store for several years now. his selection for little girls is super (i miss those pretty outfits). he has all of the bloch leotards my daughter needs now that she is at a higher level and if they are not in stock, he gets them for us. we are lucky to have a dance store nearby — yes, it is more expensive than online, but imagine not having the store when you need something in a pinch for a performance. we don’t buy pointe shoes here — much better selection up in s.f. at s.f. dancewear, and gals who are more experienced at fitting, which is critical. the owner has always been pleasant and accommodating. think we should give this local business some support (sorry to hear that a few people have not had the best experience, but we have done fine by this place).

The salesperson knew clearly knew what I was looking for and and what he had in stock which is great. What was not clear was his answer when my wife and I both asked him separately if we could return the shoes for a refund and he told us yes. We returned later that same day to return the shoes and were told we that we could only get a store credit and not a refund. I even confirmed the same question over the phone before coming to the store in the first place. In the defense of the salesman the return policy was posted clearly in the store. Furthermore the salesman seemed to know the product well and the shoes were well fitted despite not being the right shoe for the job. Had I been able to return the shoes for a full refund I would have given 5 stars.

Since there are very few dance supply stores around, so they definitely serve their purpose. However, they are very over priced on shoes, so beware. could have gotten the same thing for ½ the price on-​line.

Not the place for ballroom shoes – you should go to Ballroom Connection in Sunnyvale.
I’m going to chime in here and say that this guy does not know his ballroom shoes. I call in advance and tell him exactly what I am looking for: Shoes with a low 1.5-inch heel, specifically for WCS. He says, «Yes, I’ve got shoes for you, come in and have a look.»
I get there, and he shows me some shoe with a tiny little kitten heel. It’s the right height, but not the Cuban-​style wide heel favored by WCS. When I say the heel isn’t wide enough, he shows me a character shoe, which is kind of like a Mary Jane with a heel. It’s totally inappropriate for WCS, it would be like pointing a ballet dancer to a pair of clogs.
This wouldn’t have been too terribly bad, but when I asked if I could try a shoe on just to get a feel for the sizing, he said no; and was generally unhelpful about when he would get more choices in stock, etc. Definitely got the feeling that he was not interested in the ballroom clientele.

Very unpleasant place. Rude, ignorant salesperson, who chastized me for not buying on the spot. I made my mind about the shoes, but to avoid meeting the same salesperson again, just went to Zappos instead. I bought the same exactly shoes for better price, plus Zappos has free return policy. I give them two stars for size selection.

Had a bad experience and wouldn’t buy from there. The guy who works in the store (and possibly the owner) was very unfriendly. I’m openly gay and look the part, fyi. I received no help with buying dance shoes really and he let me try them very reluctantly. I felt negative attitude from that clerk, he was acting weird and I had a bad feeling after leaving the store. I’d rather buy from somewhere else.

Avoid this store. They overcharge and they have a no return policy that is placed so that you won’t see it when you buy something and on the receipt, which you wouldn’t notice until after you have purchased the item. Their clerk claims to have no idea for the policy, and something so contrary to any legitimate store should be posted where a consumer would surely see it before the purchase. Capezio in San Mateo is far superior, unfortunately I had not heard of it when I tried this store. One can only hope they won’t stay in business long.

My daughter and I have shopped at Dance De Jour twice in the last 3 months. The staff has always been friendly, courteous and helpful. Great small business to have in Menlo Park.

Dancer Dejour has been a horrible experience for me. I went to the store 2 days ago in search for ballroom dance shoes — I just started taking classes 2 months ago. When I walked in, the sales associate did not acknowledge me, as he was too busy catering towards another woman in the store who was buying socks for her two daughters. I had to go up to the man and ask him about the shoes, as he did not come to me. It was only after the woman left that the man helped me out in any way. He did not provide much information about what type of shoe to buy, and I really needed advice as a beginner. The only thing that he mentioned is that I should buy a shoe that is comfortable — duh. He also was not eager to help me in the same way that he catered to the woman before me — I noticed a stark contrast in his behavior. Nevertheless, I bought a pair of shoes, without much input from the man. The next day, I tried the shoes around my house, just to see how they were working on my feet. After a few minutes, I realized that I needed a shoe with a larger and lower heel, because my knees were hurting from the angle of the heels that I bought. Today, I went to the store, and the man REFUSED to take back my shoes. He claims that since I wore the shoes, he could no longer take them back. This is unfair to me, since I only wore them around the house, and any wear on the shoe was previously inflicted and sold to me in that state. Overall, I do not recommend the store to anyone interested in buying dance shoes because:
1) Apparently the sales associate is helpful to you perhaps if you are a white woman buying shoes for your daughters.
2) You can’t return the shoes if the look ‘worn,’ even if you bought them that way.

Do you think my new pair of dance shoes will infuse me with all the grace i’ve lacked up to now? Might they be just the thing to take my double piorette to triple? (and you’re thinking. hmm. if you can’t spell piroette, you might be more layman than you seem). So ok, i ‘fess up, I’m a newcomer to the world of dance, but with the intensity i always bring to new sporting events, i’m up to 4 classes a week and countin! And i notice that the tennis shoes or the barefoot, my choices up to NOW, leave a little something to be desired– both to the aching knees but more importantly to the flair of easy turns and twists! I wanna do the pretzel, people! This said, I was directed to this small dance store for shoes. And the management was extremely helpful, sweet even, and didn’t laugh for a moment at the certainty that i was a bumbling dance newbie looking for ‘kicks. He got me in a pair of comfortable shoes, gave some words of sage advice (ie wear socks! the smell is not elegant otherwise.) So here I am, jonzing for the next opportunity to shake this things up with a Madonna impersonation. Watch out world.